Officials from St. Petersburg College, LumaStream and the City of St. Petersburg recently celebrated the grand opening of LumaStream’s new high-tech manufacturing facility headquarters, where three SPC graduates are now working.

LumaStream, a low-voltage LED solutions provider, relocated from Canada last year to Midtown with the support of St. Pete’s Enterprise Zone initiative. The facility’s launch highlights a job training partnership between LumaStream, SPC and the Florida TRADE Consortium, a federal grant program that St. Petersburg College is spearheading to train workers in advanced manufacturing.

“Our definition of student success is that students finish what they start,” said SPC President Dr. Bill Law. “In working with LumaStream, we put together an idea of how we might do some workforce development differently: How we might start together and finish together at the same time; How our students could benefit by not just our instruction but by being part of the operation itself. And we sit here today with the first results. The students have made it to the finish line. We put the medal around their neck, we congratulate them, and we say ‘what’s next?’ ”

After completing their 18-week computer numerical controlled (CNC) training, three SPC graduates were hired by LumaStream. For machinist assistant Bryan Calhoun, making the switch from dental technician to manufacturing was much easier with SPC’s training.

“I really had no experience working in manufacturing on this level,” said Calhoun, who worked as a dental technician for 25 years but had a hard time finding work the past three years. “For once, I’m not looking at other places for work. I’m happy, I’m satisfied, and I want to see where this is going.”

Law joined St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman and LumaStream CEO Eric Higgs in cutting the ribbon for the new building at 2201 First Ave. S. LumaStream currently employs 25 people, but will likely need up to 200 over the next five years, as the business expands, Higgs said. The new facility will triple the production capacity of LumaStream, whose primary customer base includes restaurant and retail chains.

“This is an extraordinary opportunity for students,” Higgs said. “They not only learn their specific job but how their job impacts the organization. The college has moved at an astounding pace to make this happen.”

LumaStream partners with SPC through Florida TRADE, which serves displaced, unemployed and incumbent workers, students and veterans. The grant program provides short-term, hands-on training for high-wage, high-demand jobs in today’s technology-driven manufacturing market. Trainees can receive national certifications, paid internships and job placement services in a relatively short amount of time: 18 weeks or less.

“We do not have to move at a snail’s pace,” Law said. “We can, in fact, meet the needs of business and industry on a timely basis, step-by-step every way.”

Another CNC training class begins at the end of July. Students can apply by contacting:

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St. Petersburg College and the Midtown community on Saturday celebrated both the past – the legacies of leaders Douglas L. Jamerson Jr. and Cecil B. Keene Sr. – and the future of education in the community.

An event at the site where the new 49,000-square-foot Midtown campus is beginning to rise honored Mr. Keene’s and Mr. Jamerson’s contributions to education locally and statewide by officially placing their names on SPC buildings.

The new facility, scheduled to open in mid-2015 at the corner of 22nd Street S and 13th Avenue S, will be called the Douglas L. Jamerson Jr. Midtown Center. The three-story building will include classrooms, labs, community space, computer labs, student services areas and a library with a children’s area.

The college’s current facility at 1048 22nd St. S was renamed the Cecil B. Keene, Sr. Student Achievement Center.

In his dedication, Board of Trustees Chairman Deveron Gibbons said he had trouble narrowing down his comments “because both of these two men had such an impact on my life.”

“When I think about Mr. Keene,” he said, “what I think about most was his commitment to people and especially to students.”

Mr. Jamerson, he said, was his uncle and his mentor, a man who worked across the state for others. “He was the best legislator of this district I’ve ever seen. He fought with everything he could for St. Petersburg to be a better community.”

The event marked the official beginning of construction on the new Douglas L. Jamerson Midtown Center.

The Rev. Wayne Thompson, before his invocation, said the new building sits next to the spot where he was born, in the former Mercy Hospital. “I was thinking this morning that maybe today I was going to be reborn,” he said. “In many ways, this community is going to be reborn because of this bold initiative by St. Petersburg College and the Board of Trustees.”

SPC President Bill Law said he has been a college president for 25 years. At the end of his career, he said, “When I’m asked what are the five best days you has as a president, this will be one.”

The day was historic, Dr. Law said. “We stand here in celebration in a location that hasn’t always had reason to celebrate.”

The community, he said, “has had to overcome all the constraints of a segregated society. When the legal and societal restraints were removed, Midtown had to find a new center.”

People like Mr. Jamerson, Mr. Keene and Johnnie Ruth Clarke, for whom the adjacent health center is named, always knew that the community was strong and never stopped fighting for it, Dr. Law said. “Our celebration was put in motion years ago by those who could feel the heartbeat of this community.”

Chairman Gibbons recognized past leaders from the college and the city who fought for years to make the Midtown campus a reality, including former board members Terry Brett, Ken Burke, Ken Welch and Dick Johnston; former mayors David Fischer and Rick Baker; and community activist Theresa “Momma Tee” Lassiter.

“You have to know where you’ve been to know where you’re at,” he said. “Here we are now – we’re going to have a place of learning. We’re going to have people who can go to college right here on 22nd Street, on the Deuces.”

Mayor Rick Kriseman praised the college for its commitment to Midtown. He said his administration wants to focus on workforce training and employment in the community. “When it comes to workforce training, there’s no better partner for us than St. Petersburg College.”

At the Florida Education Facilities Planners’ Association (FEFPA) Winter Conference earlier this month, the Ethics & Social Science Building at the St. Petersburg College Clearwater Campus won the First Place Award in the Architectural Showcase for the College Category.

In his letter of recommendation for the award, SPC President Bill Law said Harvard Jolly Architects exceeded expectations with a design that “allows for an ease of interaction between students and faculty outside of the classroom, resulting in truly meaningful collegiate experiences.”

An expanded campus bookstore will welcome St. Petersburg College Seminole Campus students.

The Barnes & Noble location at the campus has moved from the small space in the lobby of the University Partnership Building to the Library. The store is on the first floor, to the left of the main entrance.

St Petersburg College architecture students Linaea Floden, Chris Galbraith, Greg Martinez and Jason Weldon have submitted a design for the 2010 U.S. Green Building Council Natural Talent Design Competition.

The competition challenges entrants to design an affordable, LEED for Homes Platinum, 800-square-foot, environmentally friendly home for an elderly client in the Broadmoor neighborhood of New Orleans.

The winning design will be selected by judges from New Orleans and nationally. The winning entry will be built under the supervision of the entry’s designer.

SPC’s ADA accessible design will cost under $100,000 to build. It features:

Strategically placed windows and doors to allow for significant breezes through the home, reducing the impact on HVAC.

Recycled siding and decking wood from Mississippi River barges, purchased through the local restoration effort “Rebuilding Together, New Orleans.”

Drought resistant, native landscaping with little to no turf.

Large trees on the south side of the structure to maximize shading and natural cooling.

The SPC design team found that New Orleans has a rich history and community, enabling its evolution.

Respecting the tradition and history, without directly reproducing it, the design echoes the forms of the historical architecture of the area.

“Rather than being abandoned after Hurricane Katrina, the strong historical and community ties actually take New Orleans to the next level,” said Linaea Floden, SPC architecture student and project leader. “The local culture is so strong and iconic that it is unique within our country.”

As a design team, they asked, “How does the home reflect this culture?”

Their solution was to divide the home into three zones: one public, one private, and one transitional. For security purposes, the design provides living and dining spaces in the front, and bedrooms toward the back. The kitchen serves to join the two.

Large windows at the front of the house allow the interior to open up to the front porch and then to the street. For added security, a large scale louver system protects the glass during storms.